The present invention relates to an improved apparatus and method for detecting motions of a performer, such a human being, animal or robot, to thereby interactively control a performance of music or the like on the basis of the detected performer's motions.
More particularly, the present invention relates to an improved performance interface system for provision between a performer or performance participant and a tone generator device such as an electronic musical instrument or tone reproduction device, which is capable of controlling the tone generator device in a diversified manner in accordance with motions of a performer.
The present invention further relates to an improved tone generation control system for controlling generation of sounds, such as musical tones, effect sounds, human voices and cries of animals, birds and the like, as well as an improved operation unit responsive to performer's motions for use in such a tone generation control system.
The present invention further relates to an improved control system which provides for an ensemble performance using a plurality of operation units.
The present invention further also relates to an improved data readout control apparatus for controlling a readout tempo of time-serial data made up of plural different groups on a group-by-group basis, an improved performance control apparatus for controlling a readout tempo of performance data of a plurality of parts on a part-by-part basis, and an improved image reproduction apparatus for controlling a readout tempo of image data made up of plural groups of data.
The present invention also relates to an improved light-emitting toy which can emit light in a different manner or color depending on how it is swung or operated otherwise by a user, as well as a system which uses the light-emitting toy and records or determines body states of a human being or animal.
Generally, in electronic musical instruments, any desired tone can be generated if four primary performance parameters, i.e. tone color, pitch, volume and effect, are determined. In tone reproduction apparatus for reproducing sound information from sources, such as CD (Compact Disk), MD (Mini Disk), DVD (Digital Versatile Disk), DAT (Digital Audio Tape) and MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface), a desired tone can be generated if three primary performance parameters, tempo, tone volume and effect, are determined. Thus, by providing a performance interface between a human operator and a tone generation apparatus such as an electronic musical instrument or tone reproduction apparatus and setting the above-mentioned four or three performance parameters using the performance interface and in response to human operator's operations, it is possible to provide a desired tone corresponding to the human operator's operations.
Performance interface of the above-mentioned type has already been proposed which is arranged to control, in response to a motion of a human operator, performance parameters of a tone to be output from an electronic musical instrument or tone reproduction apparatus. However, with the proposed performance interface, only one human operator is allowed to take part in a music performance, and only one tone generation apparatus using only one kind of performance parameter can be employed in the music performance; that is, a lot of persons can not together take part in a music performance, and diversified tone outputs can not be achieved or enjoyed.
The electronic musical instrument is one of the most typical examples of the apparatus generating sounds such as effect sounds. Most popular form of performance operation device employed in the electronic musical instrument is a keyboard which generally has keys over a range of about five or six octaves. The keyboard provides for a sophisticated music performance by allowing a performer to select any desired tone pitch and color (timbre) by depressing a particular one of the keys and also control the intensity of the tone by controlling the intensity of the key depression. However, considerable skill is required to appropriately manipulate the keyboard, and it usually takes time to acquire such skill.
Also known is an electronic musical instrument with an automatic performance function, which is arranged to execute an automatic performance by reading out automatic performance data, such as MIDI sequence data, in accordance with tempo clock pulses and supplying the read-out performance data to a tone generator. With such an automatic performance function, a designated music piece is automatically performed in response to a user's start operation, such as depression of a play button; however, after the start of the automatic performance, there is no room for the user to manipulate the performance, so that the user can not take part in or control the performance.
As stated above, the conventional electronic musical instrument with the keyboard or other form of performance operation device capable of affording a sophisticated performance would require sufficient performance skill, because the performance must be conducted manually by the human performer. Further, with the conventional electronic musical instrument with the automatic performance function, the user can not substantially take part in a performance, and in particular, the user is not allowed to take part in the performance through simple manipulations.
Further, among typical examples of time-serial data made up of different groups of data are performance data of a plurality of parts (performance parts). The automatic performance apparatus is one example of a performance control apparatus that controls readout of such performance data of a plurality of parts. Although an ordinary type of automatic performance apparatus has a function to automatically perform a music piece composed of a plurality of parts, the conventional automatic performance apparatus is arranged to only read out performance data of the individual parts on the basis of tempo control data common to the parts and thus can not perform different or independent tempo control on a part-by-part basis. Thus, no matter how the music piece is performed, tone-generating and tone-deadening timing would be the same for all of the parts. As a consequence, interactive ensemble control, in which a plurality of performers can participate based on automatic performance data of a plurality of parts, was heretofore impossible.
Therefore, to enjoy taking part in an ensemble performance, it is necessary for every user or human operator to be able to appropriately play a musical instrument (performance operation device), such as a keyboard, and it is also necessary for all the human operators to be in the place for the ensemble performance at the same time; actually, however, it is very difficult to have a sufficient number of performers, corresponding to the parts, gather at the same time. In such a case too, there would be encountered the problem that a good ensemble performance is impossible unless all the performers have substantially uniform skill.
Furthermore, there have been proposed various toys capable of being illuminated (i.e., capable of emitting light) by being operated by a user, but there has been no light-emitting toy so far which can be controlled in its light color or manner of illumination in accordance with swinging movements or other movements, by the user, of the toy. Pen lights are among toys that can be illuminated and swung by audience in a concert or the like, but ordinary pen lights can only emit a monochromatic light chemically and the emitted color and light amount of such pen lights can not be varied in accordance with directions and velocities of the swinging movements. Besides, no toy or system, which is capable of detecting a user's pulse and other body states through mere play-like motions, has been put to practical use so far.